Severing mechanism for strip elements of printing-forms.



w. L'. ROWELL.

SEVERING MECHANISM FOR STRIP ELEMENTS 0F PRINTING FORMS.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 1.1917.

$ ,383,992 Patented Nov. 5, 1918.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

INVENTOE. WILL/AM 1.. R0 WELL.

- 5 g ip W. L. HOWELL.

SEVERING MECHANISM FOR STRIP ELEMENTS OF PRINTING FORMS.

APPLICATION ms!) MAR. 1, 19H.

1,23 922., "Patented Nov. 5, 1918 3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

I 59 11v VEN TOR.

WILL/AM L ROM ELL W. L. ROWELL.

SEVERING MECHANISM FOR STRIP ELEMENTS 0F PRINTING FORMS. APPLICATION rmo Pvt/1.1.1911.

'mawz w Patented Nov. 5, 1918.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3- /NVENTOF?. WILL/AM 1.. Po WELL- WILLIAM L. HOWELL, OF EAST MILTON, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO LANSTON MONOTYPE MACHINE COMPANY, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, A CORPO- RATION OF VIRGINIA.

SEVERTNG MECHANISM FOR STRIP ELEMENTS OF PRINTING-FORMS.

masses,

1 Specificationcf Letters Patent.

Application filed March 1, 1917. Serial No. 151,749.

clear, and exact description of the same,

reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specifica tion. 1

My invention relates to severing mechanism for cuttin in desired lengths strip material such, or instance, as that produced by the commercial machine known as the Monotype lead and rule caster now being made and marketed by theLanston Monotype Machine Company, suchmachine being generally similar to that shown and described in U. S. Patent No. 625,998 granted to J. Sellers Bancroft, May 30th,1899, but modified and adapted for the casting of leads, rules, etc, the novel features of such modifications and adaptations being set forth in the patent to Amos L. Knight No. 1,222,415, dated April 10th, 1917.

A severing device has been applied to the said lead and rule caster in the commercial field, such device being clearly set forth by a the Patent No. 1,193,344 of J. Sellers Bancroft and Mauritz C. Tndahl, dated August 1st, 1916. The strip casting machine casts type metalin contact with a previously cast portion of the stri in such manner as to cause the two to use together, and then advances the fused portions to allow of a subsequent cast being made in contact with the now solidified cast immediately preceding, this process of intermittent casting and advancing of the strip being repeated continuously. The patented severing device is operated by power connections with the driving mechanism of the castingmachine, but controlled by the strip produced thereby, in such wise that theshearing mechanism for severing the strip operates when the stri is at rest. The present invention is designed to overcome certain objections to the shearingaction of the patented device by employing a rotary cutter, such as a saw, driven preferably from an independent source controlled by the strip itself and properly timed with respect to the move guides and 55 ments of the strip, the supporting guides and the pusher.

Theinvention will now be clearly set forth. in connection with the following description of the apparatus shown in the accompany ing drawings, illustrating the device of Patent #1,193,844, above mentioned, altered in accordance with the present invention, in which drawingsi Figure l is a front elevation ofa portion of the apparatus embodying the present in vention, the view point corresponding with that of Fig. 1 of the patent.

Patented N ov. 5, 1918,.

Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation looking toward the left in Fig. 1 and Fig. 3 is a somewhat similar view enlarged, but omitting the motor, the supporting guides, the pusher and associated parts.

It is not necessary to describe in detail the apparatus shown, but it is sufficient to identify some of the parts of the known mechanism and then explain wherein ithas been altered to produce the device ofthis inventiom' t The strip cast in the mold of the casting machine and intermittently advanced toward the severing mechanism is shown in Fig. 1 by the character 10 (employing the characters of the patent for the parts therein disclosed). This strip as it advances comes before the cutter and then extends beyond the cutter between supporting The latter are in the form of bars arranged above the guideway 19 andare carried by hangers 56 and 56 depending from a horizontal shaft 57. The guideway 19 is supported fromthe bar 17 by means of the brackets 18. When the end of the strip has struck against the adjustable trip 31 it carries said trip along with it during any subsequent movement before the cutting action takes place; and this trip 31 being secured to the slidable gage rod 26 to which is also attached the slidable cutting elements, such subsequent movement of the strip will maintain the cutting elepatent, the bolt 49 (see Fig. 2) to move upward and the interponent l2 to move outward into the'path of movement of the operating lever 14. When the parts are thus positioned, the operating lever on its downward stroke strikes against the .interponent 42 and swings the bell-crank lever 39 so as to operate the lever 85, which carries the cutting elements, against the tension of the spring 38. This severing operation takes place while the strip is at rest. The patented mechanism also provides for the swinging of the guides 55 and 55 substantially in one with the movement of the cutter whereby'the strip is cut and transferred laterally substantially simultaneously. This move ment is accompanied by an additional movement of the front guide 55 independently of the back guide 55 so as to allow the severed strip to fall upon the receiving table (not shown). During the forward movement of the cutter the lugs or projections 62 of the stacker or, pusher 62 are rocked in a backward direction by the rocking of the pusher 62 through the intermediary of the lever arm'66 and the rod 67 connected with the bell crank 39; Upon the return movement of the cutter the packing lugs are adapted to move forwardly to stack the last strip into contact with those previously out.

The present invention involves the employment of a rotary cutter and necessitates alterations suchas will produce a proper timing. of the parts as outlined above, and such changes will now be set forth. The lever carries a circular saw 80 rotatably mounted on the shaft 36 and the upper end of; saidlever maybe pivoted at a higher point than, in the patented structure in order. to provide for a. greater throw of the cutter. Asshown thispivot point is pro vided. byth-e shaft..81 in proximity to the barlTZ. The saw iscattached to a pulley- 82 over which a belt 83 is adapted to run. said belt receiving its power from the pulley 84 mounted on-the shaft of the electric motor 8 5,the latter being supported by brackets 86 extending upwardly from and secured to the bar 17. Thelpulley 82 is provided with an annular groove 87 into which extends the cutter shifter 88 attached to the gage rod [26. This cutter shifter 88 has. its pulley engagingfa estent ill Para el he nlane' f r tation .of ther lley (se -Fig.- and; forms con b i between he gag rod and the pulley such that the latter,

' though free to rotate under the influence of the motor'and to oscillategon the center 81 must partakelof the longitudinal m ve ents of the; gage rod.- The cutter shifter 88 is .prQVided-witha com ection with the slide ing frame 89, .(tobe presentlyidescribed') this connection being bent around the saw and pulley asshown, so as not to interfere with then when. Th id ng: fr me 8. akes the place of the cutter frame of the patent, being slidably mounted in the grooves provided for the mounting of the said cutter frame. The saw is designed to operate close to the forward end of the frame 89 so that the strips will be properly guided in and laterally held by the frame during the cutting action. This frame is provided with a laterally extending lug 90 against which bears the upper end of the lever 43 seated at its lower end between the escapemcnt pawls 4A: and 45.

p The saw and pulley bein slightly displaced to the right (Fig. 1 with respect to the shear of the patent made it necessary to move a little to the right the hangers 56 and 56? near the cutter. This is clearly shown in Fig. l. The shaft 36 is extended to the right (Fig. 1) so that its end is behind the rear guide 55. At this location a projection 91 is attached to the shaft, the end of which projection is adapted to bear against said guide or its hanger 56 when the cutter has been moved forwardly suiliciently to complete the cutting of the strip. The shaft 57 is pinned or keyed to the front hangers 56, by the pin 92, the rear hangers 56 being loosely pivoted thereon. The end of the shaft 57 near the cutter is provided with a radial projection 93 secured to the shaft for cotiperation with the upper end of the lever 61 pivoted also on the shaft 36 and having its lower end extending to contact with the pusher shaft (32 at about the time substantially when the projection 91 has caused the lateral movement of the severed strip beyond the guideway 19 as will now be explained. When the strip has just been, severed the projection 91 will have come into contact with the hanger 56 so that a continuance of the forward movement of the cutter will cause the simultaneous forward movement'ofthe hanger 56, the guide 56, the severed strip, the hanger 55 and the guide 55-to move the severed strip over the edge of the guideway'l9. In the meantime the lower end of, the lever 61 will have come into contact with the pusher shaft 62 and the upper end into contact with the projection 93, following which said lever will move; the projection 93 and with it the shaft 5,7, the. front hangers 56 and the front guidesfifi at a; greater speed, as will readily e seen, than these parts are moved by the projection 91. i ccord'ingly after the part9]. has cleared the strip from the guideway 19 the lever 61 and projection 93 will move the guide 55; away from the strip so that the latterwill be free to escape.

The operation of the device is similar to that ofthe' patent except as has been seen, that the saw advances to cut the strip completely before the guides 55 and 55 are moved, the lost motion construction of the projection 91 andof the lever 61 and the cooperating parts causing the guides 55 and 5'5 to move forward together holding the severed strip between them immediately after the saw has severed the strip and while the saw is still moving forwardly. The front guide 55 is thereupon moved forwardly at a taster rate than the movement of the other parts, thus allowing the strip to drop from between the guides and fall on the table. Resistance to movement of the hangers 56 and 56 is provided by the springs 58 and 59 respectively, one end of each of which springs is secured to a pin 59 fastened to the bracket 18 and the other ends of which springs are secured to the hangers 56 and 56*.

While the saw is being moved forwardly the packer shaft 62 and lugs 62 are being rocked backwardly to remove the lugs from the path of the strip when it has been released and falls. Upon withdrawing the saw, the various parts will assume, as will be readily noted, their normal positions, the

lugs 62 in rocking forwardly accomplishing the stacking of the last severed strip against the previously severed one.

I claim 1. In mechanism for severing strip elements of printing forms, the combination of the following instrumentalities, to-wit, a longitudinally movable strip guide and a transversely movable strip guide, said guides being spaced from each other, a rotary cutter movable in unison with said longitudinally movable guide and movable tran versely with relation thereto in the space between the said guides, a motor for rotating said cutter, means for moving the cutter transversely while allowing it to rotate and a gage interposed in the path of the strip for controlling the longitudinal position of the cutter and longitudinally movable guide.

2. In mechanism for severing strip elements of printing forms, the combination of a rotary cutter mounted to move both longitudinally and transversely of its axis oi ro tation, means for rotating said cutter in any longitudinal position of adjustment, a gage connected with the cutter for controlling its position longitudinally oh its axis, said gage being adjustably mounted in the path of the end of the strip, supporting guides for the strip intermediate the cutter and gage, means including a cutter supporting lever for moving the cutter transversely of its axis to sever the strip and operative connoctions between the cutter supporting lever and the guides, said connections being longL tudinally located intermediate the cutter and the gage, for moving said guides to release the strip after the cutter has advanced to sever the strip.

3. In mechanism for severing strip elements of printing forms, the combination of a rotary cutter mounted to move longitudinally of its axis of rotation, means for rotating said cutter while allowing it to move longitudinally of its axis, a gage connected with the cutter but allowing rotation there of, said gage being adjustably mounted in the path of the end of the strip, supporting guides for the strip intermediate the cutter and the gage, means including a cutter supporting lever for moving the cutter transversely of its axis to sever the strip, and means carried by said cutter supporting lever and having a lost motion connection with said supporting guides for moving the supporting guides subsequently to the severing of the strip.

4:. in mechanism for severing strip elements of printing forms, the combination of a rotatable saw mounted to slide lengthwise of the strip and movable transversely thereof to sever the same, a gage adjustably mounted in the path of the end of the strip, a sliding guide one end of which is in proximity to the transverse path of the saw, means for connecting said gage and said sliding guide, means for connecting said gage and said saw while allowing rotation and transverse movement of the latter, sup porting guides for the strip between the saw and the gage and an independent motor for rotating the saw while allowing longitudinal and transverse movements of the same.

WILLIAM L. RUWELL.

(topics of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Gommissioner or JEatcnts, Washington, JD. ti. 

